Our JJM team has been meeting with *Derrick for nearly a year. During his time in detention, we have watched him achieve and maintain Level Three status (being a model citizen, staying out of trouble, participating, etc), improve his GPA, and, most importantly, accept Jesus! Yet through it all, *Derrick carried something heavy in the back of his mind: Prison time.
Just 16 years old, and facing some serious charges, *Derrick was charged as an adult rather than as a juvenile.
Whenever we met with him and his peers for Bible study, *Derrick stood out. Even when others were goofing off or not taking things seriously, he would come prepared with a list of questions and listen intently to every conversation. In the weeks leading up to his sentencing, *Derrick leaned heavily on everything he had learned from his JJM leaders, staff, his Granny, and his own personal discoveries.
He told me: “I know I am going to serve some time, and I’m scared, of course. Who wouldn’t be? But I know so much more now. I am so different. I am a man of God, and this is just all part of my testimony. I’m going to use everything you guys taught me and show the other guys the kind of peace and transformation God can bring.”
That week, a few other JJM leaders and I attended his court hearing to observe the sentencing.
The judge informed *Derrick that he would be serving time in jail, graciously avoiding prison. *Derrick’s mom began to wail and ran out of the courtroom, following that revelation. The judge continued explaining all of the little details of the sentence, including fines and paperwork that needed signing. It is a heartbreaking thing to watch a child stand before a judge, looking utterly confused, yet still replying, “Yes, I understand, Your Honor.”
*Derrick was then taken through the side door and away to jail to serve his sentence.
My leaders and I met his mother in the courthouse hallway and began praying with and over her. We prayed that her son would remain safe, make wise decisions, be a light to others, and hold tightly to his faith, despite the circumstances.
When we finished praying, the court reporter came out and told us there was something the judge wanted to say and that *Derrick would be brought back into the courtroom. So we all returned.
The judge explained that because of *Derrick’s age, progress, and lack of criminal history, he did not believe it was appropriate for *Derrick to serve time in the county jail alongside adults. Instead, he ordered that *Derrick remain in the Juvenile Detention Center, where he had already spent the past year, to finish out his sentence.
But by the grace of God…
What felt like the end of *Derrick’s story became evidence that God is still moving in ways we cannot always see. Our God is the God of alternative endings!
Even when the consequences of our choices remain real, God is still able to redeem, restore, and write a different ending than the one we expect.
So often, we limit what we believe God can do. We see closed doors, impossible situations, and broken stories and assume the outcome has already been decided. I know I did. I walked out of that courtroom defeated after hearing the judges first decision, because I never expected that there could be another way.
Thankfully, God is not confined by our expectations!
*Name Changed for Confidentiality